Political and technology leaders from San Antonio were out in force for the duration of the interactive portion of South by Southwest in Austin. Choose San Antonio wrapped up its Casa San Antonio activation at the Half Step bar on March 12. But before the closure, the nonprofit group hosted a day’s worth of presentations revolving around Smart City initiatives.

“San Antonio is in the middle of a renaissance.” So says Hugh Daschbach, culinary concierge of Hotel Emma at Pearl.

Editor's Note: This story has been updated throughout.  There will be more than San Antonian taquerias, musicians and filmmakers demonstrating their talent at this year’s South by Southwest (SXSW) festival. Several local representatives from the high technology, culinary arts and educational sectors will gather in Austin to discuss how San Antonio has now become known more than a tourist town. The annual convergence of interactive technology, music and cinema begins March 10.

San Antonians involved with eco-friendly sustainability and placemaking highlighted their projects, and promoted the city's potential, at a unique conference in Austin earlier this week. South by Southwest (SXSW) Eco is the three-day, ecology-centric version of the nearly two-week-long multimedia festival held each March. By design, SXSW Eco, held every fall, is smaller in scale and draws way fewer attendees than its spring counterpart.